My 18-Year-Old Wife

In the hospital, Joe Liu and Peter Liu were both lying on the bed.
Peter had already been walking with a limp, being pushed down on the ground would definitely keep on bed for at least half a
year.
They would ask for hell lot of compensation if it was some random people that did it to them, but it was Mark
“Helen...” Uttered Peter, weakly.
He seemed to have gotten ten years older, he was frail, mentally and physically.
“I’m here, grandpa!” Helen immediately ran to him.
“Mark had agreed that he would meet you tonight, it...it’s a good start. You have to seize the chance, you’re our only hope
whether we could remain our position in this city.” Said Peter, with great seriousness.
No one dare lay any sarcasm down on Helen anymore, not even Lisa or Rose. They had nothing left in their hands but Helen
and her relationship with Mark, the meeting she’s about to have with Mark would decide the fate of everyone in Liu’s family.
“Don’t worry, grandpa, it’s about everyone, I would do anything just to restore the cooperation!” Replied Helen, knowing the
weight of the responsibility on her shoulder.
“That’s my granddaughter.” Said Peter, a rare compliment to Helen.
He called Ben and Xiaohui, Helen’s parents, to his side and said to them:”Chengjiang’s company would be yours if Helen could
get the cooperation back.”
It immediately elated Ben and Xiaohui.
What a bliss! As the youngest son in Liu's family, Ben didn’t have much competence, consequently nor was he respected by the
others, since his family led a rather wretched life. Being given such an opportunity was beyond Ben’s imagination.

“Thank you, dad! Helen won’t let you down!” Said Xiaohui, more excited than Ben.
But Chengjiang didn’t like it. Sure he would, it was the company he had fought for so long.
“Dad, it’s...” Before Chengjiang finished his words, Chengfeng stopped him, stared into his eyes and said:”Don’t be so
selfish,Chengjiang, we do what dad want us to do. Think about the bigger picture, your company is nothing comparing with it.”
Bigger picture again. Chengjiang didn’t say anything after that.
“But, Helen...”Said Peter,”Mark is not easy to handle with, if you have no other choices...”
Peter stopped for a while, thinking about whether he should continued.
And he did:”You could...stay there for a night. I think...he won’t turn that down, you know...you’re gorgeous.”
And it shocked Helen and her parents.
Tears swelled up Helen’s eyes in no time. The worst thing was not that it was a pure seduction it was that the idea was from
Peter, her grandpa.
It was true that Helen just went through a divorce, but Mike never laid his hands on her. Her chastity was still there, but even if it
wasn’t ,Peter should never say anything like that.
“Grandpa! That’s the bottom line we should not cross!” Cried Helen, with trembling sound.
As timid as Ben was , it was too much to lay such a disgrace on his daughter. He walked to Peter and murmured:”Dad, that’s just
too much to ask for, we shouldn’t ask Helen to do such thing.”
Bang!
Peter smashed the bed with his fist and exclaimed:”You think I want this? Why would I ask my granddaughter to do it if we’re not
on the brink of life and death! And it would be death to all of us if we fail tonight, do you even understand!”

That was a huge reminder. Everyone started trying to persuade Helen except her parents.
“It’s necessary, Helen, it’s for all of us!”
“You’ve married once anyway, it’s not a big deal!”
“That’s i, Helen! Once you make it, it’ll be the greatest contribution to our family!”
All those words broke Helen down. She didn’t until then that she realized how she had been treated in the Liu’s family, minor and
menial.
To the others, they would dearly love to ask her to do anything in the name of the bigger picture, however filthy or obscene.
Crowded by all those people, Helen started crying and ran away from the ward.
“Helen!”
Ben and Xiaohui followed and stopped her at the entrance of the hospital.
“Helen, your grandpa has no other options, no one would ever ask you to do it if we were not in such a crucial trouble!” Said
Xiaohui.
Tears were still running down Helen’s face, she sneered and said:”The trouble? We brought the trouble on us ourselves! We
thought that we could just cling to Fengxing forever! So this is what I’m for? Selling myself to solve your trouble? I’m not a
whore!”
Helen needed time to calm herself, so Xiaohui took Ben aside and said to him:”I don’t want to put Helen in such a thing either,
but Chengjiang’s company that dad promised you makes quite much money, we can’t let go of such a chance!”
Ben looked to her, with disbelief all over his face.

“Are you out of your mind? She’s our daughter!”
Xiaohui tossed her bag onto Ben and scorned:”Then tell me another way to settle this trouble! I see no choices but to deal with
this Mark first, what else can we do other than send Helen to him? You’re nothing better than that useless Mike! You’ve never
bought me anything except our wedding ring, and your brothers wives all have shiny golden things all over them! And me?
Nothing! You either talk your daughter into it, or we’ll divorce!”
Ben didn’t dare look at her as all those condemn rained on him, a divorce would make him the most menial person in Liu’s family.
It was all because of his incompetence anyway.
He gathered himself up and walked to Helen, stuttered:”Helen, neither of us want you to do it. But you see what happened, this
is the only way for us to gain respect in this family! For the sake of that company...”
Helen suddenly looked at to Ben, kept shaking her head as despair filled up her eyes.
“We’ve gone through so much trouble to bring you up, it’s your turn to return the favor! You must get this thing done, do you
understand!?” Exclaimed Xiaohui as she saw the look on Helen’s face.
“So...this is the Liu’s people...”It was the last straw on Helen’s back that her parents were pushing her like that,”You...you’re not
my parents!”
She creamed out in greatest anger and despair, then she ran away, crying.
It was at that moment that she totally realized what desperation felt like, and she eventually found out that Mike would never
make her go through such disgrace and shame.
As useless as Mike was, he has clear principles and he always did what she asked.
“Mike, where are you...”Uttered Helen, crying still.